


brand new, rich youth

by demigodbeautiies



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Billionaire's Son Nico di Angelo, Coffee Shops, College student typical alcohol intake, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Overworked underpaid College Student Will Solace, Recreational Drug Use, Unresolved Sexual Tension, rich kid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-20 10:46:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30003684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demigodbeautiies/pseuds/demigodbeautiies
Summary: It was hard not to know who Nico di Angelo was. But that doesn't mean that Will has to like him.-Will Solace has a grudge against snobby rich kid Nico di Angelo. Will being forced together for a group project make him change his mind? Or will it just cause more problems?
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Comments: 15
Kudos: 91





	1. I'm no ghost, no fool

**Author's Note:**

> This was a prompt by a lovely anon I had on tumblr, which I really had a lot of fun running with! It should be quick to upload as well, but I broke it up for the sake of ✨ drama ✨ 
> 
> Title from Rich Youth by Hayley Kiyoko

“Ugh,” Will muttered under his breath, narrowing his eyes as he watched the one and only Nico di Angelo walk into the lecture, late, like he owned the damn room. 

He probably did, but that was irrelevant. 

It was hard not to know who Nico di Angelo was. Whether or not you paid attention to the culture in the city and on campus, you knew of at least one of the children of the Big Three business conglomerates their city housed. 

There were Thalia and Jason Grace, the bright eyed siblings that were set to split the Grace family fortune. There was Percy Jackson, the heir of the eccentric but still disgustingly rich Jackson estate. And then there was Nico di Angelo. 

The Graces and the Jacksons were all friendly. Rich, but down to earth. Chill. Nice. Will had spent many nights drunk on alcohol Thalia had generously bought him, with even more afternoons in the gym with Jason and Percy. 

Even Nico’s sister Hazel, who had taken her mother’s name and seemed set on having nothing to do with her family’s business, was kind whenever Will saw her. She was a friendly face, much like Percy and Thalia and Jason were. 

But Nico di Angelo- 

“He’s a complete snob,” Will groaned; Austin made a quiet noise next to him that could have been an agreement. “He has no sense of consequence-”

“Mr. Solace, do you have something to share?” the lecturer said, and Will jumped, heat rising to his cheeks as his classmates snickered.

“Sorry,” he said, shrinking down in his seat as the lecturer turned around again.

“ _ Ugh _ ,” he said again, and Austin laughed.

“So,” Austin said, when their class finally finished. Will had spent most of it glaring daggers at the back of Nico’s head. “Party at Percy’s this weekend. Are you coming?”

Will sighed, already knowing he was going to be completely exhausted by the time Friday rolled around. 

“If I’m not working,” he said. His rent had gone up, not by enough to make it unaffordable, but by enough that he had to work just those few extra hours that made his week a living hell. 

And speaking of - 

“Fuck,” he grumbled, glancing at the screen of his phone. It felt like their class had only just finished, but he was already somehow running late. 

“Listen, check if you can come,” Austin called after him as he started to push his way out down the hall, “You need to get drunk!”

Will laughed, and waved at his friend as he made his way to work. 

He was damn right. 

✮✮✮

The city was spoiled for choice when it came to cafes, but Will was particularly fond of the one he worked at. 

“You’re coming to Percy’s on Friday, right?” Kayla asked, while Will was refilling the coffee grinder. He turned over his shoulder to shoot her an incredulous look. 

“Am I the only person that didn’t know about that?” he asked, and she laughed. 

“Probably,” she said, “But I know you’re off work, so you can’t say no.”

Will scrunched up his nose. Working with Kayla was a dream, until she used her status as best friend and colleague to blackmail him into socialisation.

“I heard Nico’s gonna be there,” she teased, and Will grumbled.

When he had first met Nico di Angelo, he may or may not have had the tiniest of crushes on him. Before he had opened his mouth and made it clear that he was a complete dick, Will had seen him and felt his butterflies swarm in his stomach. 

Kayla had not yet let him live it down. 

“He’s such a dick,” Will groaned, and Kayla laughed. He turned away from her until his back was to the front door, scrubbing at the stubborn coffee stains littering seemingly every surface of the shop.

“It’s not that bad-”

“It is,” he said, waving his arm above his head. 

“Will,” Kayla said, but Will shook his head.

“No, for real, Nico di Angelo can suck my dick.”

“Will, I think that-” Kayla started, and he could feel her fidgeting even over his shoulder. 

“Kayla, he’s the most insufferable person I’ve  _ ever  _ met-”

“Okay, Will, but-”

“ _ Ooh, I’m Nico di Angelo I can do whatever the fuck I want- _ ”

“Will!” Kayla yelled, and Will stopped, turning blinking at his colleague with an incredulous look.

“No, let him continue,” an icy voice behind him said. Will froze, and Kayla grimaced. 

He turned slowly, dreading to see who had walked in - 

“Welcome to Chiron’s Coffee House,” Will said, trying to be peppy as Nico di Angelo glared daggers at him from over the counter. “What can I get?”

“Black coffee,” was all he said, voice laced with an edge of something sharp that Will wasn’t keen to uncover. His jaw twitched, but he just nodded. 

Nico said nothing for the rest of the time he stood in the cafe with them, and Will was silent as he worked, making his coffee, fighting the urge to spit in it just a bit, until Nico wordlessly took it and left out the front door. 

“Man, I fucking hate that guy,” he said, watching Nico leave, and Kayla laughed. 

✮✮✮

As much as he had been dreading a trip to the Jackson estate in the middle of the week, he found himself easily swayed when Percy had dragged him inside with a cheer and offered him a row of shots, no payment required. 

Will let out a shout after slamming his shot glass back down onto the table, wavering in the bubbling, cheering crowd of drink happy students. 

He laughed, letting Thalia throw her arm over his shoulder and push another shot glass into his hand. 

“You’re  _ wild,” _ she crowed, and Will grinned, delighting in the rush of heat and energy and  _ people _ . 

He turned, swaying in the sea of bodies - 

Nico was watching him. 

He staggered, from the alcohol or from the surprise of making eye contact with him, he didn’t know.

He was standing at the end of the room, on his own, arms crossed and a bottle of something dangling from his loose grip. 

Nico raised an eyebrow at him, and Will’s traitorous brain caught on the low dip of his shirt around his collarbone. 

He swallowed, mouth dry all of a sudden without him realising, but Nico kept watching him, unmoving. 

Kayla was next to him without him realising, grinning. 

“You need some air, I think,” Kayla said into his ear, yelling over the rush of other voices. After a moment Will nodded, drawing his eyes away from Nico and letting her wrap her arm around his waist and lead him to one of the balconies. 

“Fucking rich people houses,” Will muttered, and Kayla nodded, still grinning as she led him out onto one of the balcony decks. 

“Saw you staring at Nico,” Kayla said, grinning too wide even in the fresh air of the balcony. 

“Hush,” he grumbled. 

“Why is it you hate him so much?” 

“Why do you  _ not  _ hate him?” he countered. Kayla shrugged. 

“This feels like some star-crossed lovers bullshit,” she said, and Will scoffed.

“What, break up him and Thalia?” 

“Are they  _ actually  _ dating?” 

“Everyone says they are,” Will said, shrugging. “I doubt it. Have you seen the way Thalia is around Reyna?” 

“Fair enough,” she said with a laugh, nudging her shoulder into his. 

“Listen, you know I tried being nice,” he said, after a moment, “He just kept on ignoring me. He’s pretty fucking cold.”

“Yikes,” she said, and Will just shrugged. 

“You know as well as I do that he does whatever the hell he wants without thinking about consequences,” he muttered. Kayla nodded. “He just leaves other people to clean up his mess, and I hate it.”

And yet, he was still hot as fuck. 

He could feel the alcohol he had swimming in his stomach. It made his heat flicker in his veins with each beat of his pulse every time he thought about Nico fucking di Angelo. 

Will groaned, dropping his head onto his arms where they leant against the bannister.

“Are you mad you think he’s hot, still?” Kayla asked; Will just groaned louder. 

“Fuck off,” he said, and Kayla laughed. 

“You know I’m right.”

“You are, is the worst part,” Will groaned. Kayla just smiled. 

“Listen, I’m going back inside,” Kayla said, pushing herself up to stand and patting Will on the head. He grinned. “Don’t die.”

“I won’t,” he said, and she rolled her eyes. 

Will dropped his head forward on his arms, the noise filtering from inside gaining in volume then abruptly shutting off again as Kayla went inside. 

He could hear people on the deck below, conversation and music floating up gently in the night air, but the upper levels were empty, and with it, came silence. 

Until the door opened behind him, cutting him out of his quiet contemplation.

“Oh,” he said, when he realised just who else was with him. 

Nico di Angelo said nothing, glancing over to look at him before looking away again just as fast, as he went and sat at the other end of the balcony. Will’s eyes caught on the cigarette hanging from his mouth, drunken brain fixating on lips and teeth, but he seemed keen to ignore Will. 

He wasn’t complaining. 

He turned his eyes again to gaze out at the dark garden of the Jackson estate. Percy’s house was too fucking big, and his garden reflected it. 

“Looking for landscape ideas?” a voice said, and Will jumped. 

“What?” he said, again, still startled to realise Nico had spoken. But he just shrugged. 

“Jackson has a nice garden,” was all he said, “Although I think ours is bigger.”

Will rolled his eyes, turning to look at him, feeling hot annoyance flare in him. Of fucking course. He shouldn’t have expected anything different, but it was still completely annoying to hear the snobbiness come off him in waves.

“You would say that,” he said. Nico looked up at him, eyebrow raised. 

“Right,” he said, “What was it you called me? The most insufferable person you’ve ever met?”

Will scrunched his nose up, probably too drunk to deal with this whole conversation. And yet, here he was. 

“You are,” he said. Nico laughed, shaking his head as he took another drag of his cigarette. It didn’t escape Will’s notice that he turned his head to exhale, taking extra care not to get any smoke on Will. 

“Thanks,” he said, “I’m well aware I’m not very likeable.”

Will frowned, hating that he felt bad, all of a sudden. It wasn’t like he was coming from nowhere with his dislike of the man across the floor from him. He had shown time and time again that he wasn’t here to make friends. 

But he still felt guilty.

“Nico,” he started, but Nico just waved a hand at him. 

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, again, pushing himself up to stand and wandering, wordless, back inside. 

Will paused for a moment, letting the silence fall back over him as Nico shut the door behind him. 

“I’m too fucking drunk,” he muttered, flopping back onto the floor. 

This was all Austin’s fault. 

✮✮✮

Somehow, Will still felt hungover by Monday morning. 

Percy really had been generous with his shots, and when Will stumbled downstairs with frustration in his veins just to see Nico leaning against a wall looking stupidly, disgustingly attractive, Will had sought out the host and suggested tequila. 

Three days later, he was still feeling a particular kind of awful, and regret his decisions.

“You have a pair project due,” the lecturer announced. She sounded like she was putting extra energy into sounding upbeat, as if she could drown out the annoyed grumbles by sheer force of will. 

Will was impressed with her effort, but still joined in in voicing his displeasure.

“Your partners have already been chosen,” she continued, and paused while the room broke off into louder complaints. She stopped, looking completely exhausted while waiting for them to die down again before gesturing to the board behind her. 

Will wanted to fucking die. 

“For fuck’s sake,” Will muttered; Austin laughed, until he turned to glare at him.

The universe was doing something cruel if it felt the need to pair him up with Nico  _ fucking  _ di Angelo. 

“Maybe he can pay someone to do it for you,” Austin snickered, but Will only rolled his eyes.

By the time class ended Will had thought of every possible way he could open a conversation with Nico, and dreaded every single one. 

It had been a long lecture full of dread, and Will wasn’t looking forward to having to confront him, to arrange a time to actually willingly see him in public. To talk to him. How the hell was he supposed to start a conversation with someone after he had heard him rant and rave behind his back?

But he had beaten Will to the chase. When Will made his way out of the lecture hall, dragging his feet, Nico was waiting for him. He was leaning against the opposite wall in the hallway, hands in the pockets of his ridiculous vintage coat. He perked up when he spotted Will.

“Hey,” Will said, already wary. 

“We should find a time to sort this out,” Nico said, cutting to the chase. Straight to the point, but not exactly seeming keen. Will could relate.

“Yeah,” Will said, so, so fucking uncomfortable, still grossly hungover. Still unable to think of anything other than Nico, hot and annoying at Percy’s, overhearing him call him  _ insufferable. _

“Do you want to go now and get it over with?” Nico asked. 

Will was at least glad to see that Nico seemed as reluctant as he did.

“I have to work tonight,” Will said, finally. “Can you meet me at the coffeehouse sometime? We can get it done after my shift.”

“Sure,” Nico said, and then, with boldness that was almost startling; “Give me your phone number.”

Will’s jaw clenched involuntarily, already irked by the demanding way he spoke, but dug his hand into his pocket and handed his phone over to Nico to put his number in. 

“Just text me whenever works,” Nico said, and Will nodded, watching, wordless, as Nico turned and left. 

“Ugh,” Will said, still too hungover. For any of it. 

He wanted to go pass out. 

✮✮✮

It was another few days before Will had the time and emotional energy to even consider spending an hour with Nico, even in public. But when the time they agreed rolled around, he wished he had waited just one day more. 

He looked up as the bell above the door jangled for what seemed like the millionth time in the past hour. It had been an endless stream of students and parents with screeching children and school kids and he was run off his feet.

Will caught Nico’s eye and he breathed out a huff, waving at him once before being drawn away by something loud and beeping. 

But Nico said nothing, finding a seat quietly and waiting, sticking like glue at the back of Will’s mind until his colleague Connor finally rushed in with apologies and a gentle tap at his side for him to go. 

He ducked out from behind the counter and sat down across from Nico in a huff. He knew damn well he was sweaty and gross, that he still had coffee grounds on his t-shirt, but he was too run off his feet to do anything about it. 

“Will-”

“Okay, so. We’re good. Literary analysis.”

“We can take a break, if you want.”

“No, we’re good, we’re good,” he said. He wanted to go home and collapse, but he had to get through this hour study session with Nico before finishing his other assignments. It was going to be a long day, but the sooner he finished, the sooner he could pass out. 

“You’re clearly exhausted,” Nico said, frustratingly blunt, and Will rolled his eyes. 

“Very observant,” he said, and Nico huffed. 

“Just chill out. We have time-”

“Maybe you do,” Will snapped, “I have all my assignments to do after this, because I’ve been at work all afternoon. But sorry, you don’t need to  _ work,  _ do you?”

“Listen, you don’t need to be a dick,” Nico started, and Will rolled his eyes. 

“I’m the dick, am I?” he said, leaning back against his chair to cross his arms. “Are we ignoring the time you called me  _ completely insufferable?” _

“You  _ are- _ ”

“You’ve hardly ever talked to me-”

“What about all the times I  _ tried _ ?” Will retorted, sharp and loud, knowing he was making a scene. But Nico only blinked, looking startled, but Will continued on. 

“I’ll admit I wasn’t always fair to you, but I didn’t just start from nowhere. I tried for weeks to be nice, but you never said shit,” Will said, vaguely able to tell that he was ranting. “You’re rude, you’re late as if that doesn’t make it difficult for the rest of us, you’re inconsiderate, and you’re a complete  _ snob.” _

Will finally fell quiet with a final huff, vaguely aware that there were people at other tables staring. Nico was silent, eyes open wide. 

“Okay,” Nico said, and then he was pushing himself up to stand. Will grit his teeth, hard, saying nothing as Nico moved to leave. 

He watched him duck out the door, wordless, and flopped down onto the table before him with a loud, frustrated shout. 

He was going to fail.

✮✮✮

Despite a fair amount of pleading, his request to change partners was denied. 

“I appreciate that partnered projects can be difficult, but the assignments were set based on class performance. Pairs all had to be at a similar level,” his lecturer said, looking at least a little bit sheepish. 

Will nodded, disappointed, but unsurprised. 

“Thanks anyway,” he managed, moving to leave.

He opened the door to Nico, slouching down in his vintage jacket like he could hide from the world. 

Will jumped, startled by his sudden appearance, but Nico only blinked at him. 

“Hey,” he said, on reflex, rather than out of any desire to actually talk to him, instantly cursing himself. 

Nico stepped back, and Will was glad for that. At the very least, he wouldn’t be having whatever conversation was bound to now happen while standing awkwardly in his professor’s doorway. 

“Hey,” Nico replied, slow and halting. Will smiled, awkwardly, and moved to step around him. 

He was more than happy to leave it at that and ignore him, before a thought popped into his head. He groaned, realising he was going to have to have this conversation sooner or later. 

“She can’t accommodate partner changes,” he said, turning around to look at Nico. He watched Nico grimace, lowering his fist where he had been about to knock. “Maybe you can bribe her out of it.”

Nico looked up to glare at him, and Will felt himself smile, feeling at least a little bit smug. 

“I don’t pay for my grades,” he snapped. 

“She did say we got paired up for having similar grades,” Will said, “So I guess you aren’t lying.” 

He was surprised to see Nico snort at that, and even more surprised to find that Nico wandered after him when he moved to leave the building. 

The walk through the artificially lit halls of the faculty building was quiet, but not as strained as Will had been expecting. 

And that was a start.

“Listen, we have to get this sorted out,” Nico said, finally. “And it looks like we don’t have a choice.”

Will bit back a snarky reply, and nodded. Nico was making a peace offering, no matter how shitty and blunt he was being. He could at least try. 

“I’m closing up the cafe tonight,” Will said, eventually, “If you come by after it shuts, we can have the place to ourselves.”

“Sure,” Nico said, after a pause. 

Will just had to hope it would go better the second time. 

He tried not to think too hard about his plan for the evening throughout the rest of his shift, brushing every thought of assignments and  _ Nico  _ out of his head each time they sprung up unannounced, until he was turning the key in the locks of the front door with Nico stuck inside with him. 

He shut the curtains of the cafe as Nico found a seat behind him, and flipped the lights so it was cozy, but bright. 

“Coffee?” he asked, ducking behind the counter to tug on a sweater he had stored beneath the shelves earlier. Will glanced up over the coffee machine at Nico. He blinked, and shrugged. 

“If it’s going,” he said. Will just nodded, getting to work prepping drinks quietly. The cafe was eerily quiet, but Will was used to it. He loved his manager for many things, but for nothing as much as his willingness to let Will stay late to study after his shift. 

He stepped around from behind the counter, backpack hanging from his elbow as he carried two mugs. A black coffee for Nico, and a latte, for him. 

He set them down gently as he pulled out his folders, his papers, his books, to add to the pile Nico had already begun to make on the table. 

When he looked up, Nico was staring at the mug before him.

“It’s what you usually get,” Will said, “I can get you milk or sugar, though.”

“No, that’s okay,” Nico said, blinking like he had been startled out of his thoughts. “I was more surprised that you knew what I drank.”

Will shrugged, not wanting to admit that Nico was his most memorable customer. Because he was infuriating, he would tell anyone that asked. Not because when he first saw him he had thought he was  _ cute.  _

“Do you do archery?” Nico said, out of nowhere. Will blinked, eyebrows furrowing until Nico nodded at his chest.

“Oh,” he said, looking down at the hoodie he wore. Kayla seemed to exclusively wear clothes that were big enough to swamp her, and Will exploited that as much as possible. “This is Kayla’s.”

“Your girlfriend, right?” he said, and Will snorted, shaking his head. 

“God, no,” he said, “I love her, but her one love is archery and being mean to me.”

Nico nodded, leaning back in his chair with a look on his face that Will couldn’t decode. 

“You and Thalia, right?” he said, eventually, and Nico scoffed. 

“No way in hell,” he said. Will rolled his eyes. 

“Too good for her?” he asked. 

“She doesn’t date,” Nico replied, “And I’m also gay.”

He said it so matter of factly Will almost didn’t clock the fact he had said anything at all.

“Oh,” he said, after a moment, when it finally sunk in. 

“Surprised?” Nico said, voice dry and sarcastic. Will didn’t say anything, unsure what there was  _ to  _ say. They fell silent, for a while, before Will opened his mouth. 

“Do people know?” he asked, and Nico scoffed. 

“If you still think I’m dating Thalia, I guess news hasn’t spread,” he said, and Will nodded. That was fair. “But if you’re asking if you can tell people, go for it.”

“I wouldn’t just talk about your sexuality behind your back,” Will said, defensive with a sharp flare of annoyance, “That’s shitty.”

He was surprised to see Nico’s head tip up sharply to look at him, but he kept his gaze, suddenly stubborn. 

“People know,” Nico said, finally, “Once my dad found out, it didn’t matter.”

Will nodded. He could relate to that, at least - once his mom had found out, there hadn’t been any reason to keep quiet. 

“Was he okay with it?”

Nico glared at him, already bristling, like Will had pushed too far. He was reminded sharply and all at once that they weren’t friends, not in any meaningful sense. But before Will could take it back, Nico huffed, and answered.

“He doesn’t care,” he said, finally, “It wasn’t like I was going to be disowned, or cut off. He just doesn’t care, period. I could get hit by a car and he’d hardly register the medical bill when it came through.”

“I’m sorry,” Will said, after a moment, for lack of anything else to say. Nico shrugged, fidgeting with one of the rings on his fingers. 

“It is what it is,” he said. In the silence of the cafe after hours, Will felt a little bit watched. 

“My mom-” Will started, and cut himself off with a sigh, “She hasn’t ever mentioned me being bi after I came out. It’s not like she kicked me out, or was shitty. But it feels just as bad, almost. Which is stupid-”

“It’s not,” Nico said, and Will looked up at him. He was absently turning the mug on the table in front of him, slowly. “It’s shitty.”

Will swallowed, and found himself nodding. 

It really fucking was. 

“Yeah,” he said. Nico looked up at him, and leaned forward again. 

“So, literary analysis,” he said, and Will nodded, turning to look back at the paper before them. 

That, he could do. 


	2. I'm giving all my energy

They made more progress than Will had thought humanly possible that evening, and even more the time after that. 

It was surprising. 

He wasn’t expecting working with Nico di Angelo to be so… manageable. But he kept his mouth shut when Nico said something in that deadpan way that he did, and Nico didn’t say anything ridiculously out of touch to the point of being insulting, as if he knew that that was what was driving Will up the wall. 

“We can keep working on it this Friday,” Will said, shutting his book closed with a quiet  _ thwump _ . It was their third - or fourth, technically, counting their disastrous first attempt - evening spent together studying, making use of the silence found after hours at the cafe. “I’m not actually working until Monday.”

But Nico grimaced, and shook his head. 

“It’s Jason’s birthday,” he said, “He’d never let me live it down if I didn’t go.”

Will nodded. That would just make it another uneventful weekend for him, but that was probably less sad than studying with someone he hated while being simultaneously stupidly attracted to them. 

“How about-”

“You should come,” Nico said, interrupting him. Will blinked, shooting his head back up to look at him. Nico didn’t look phased. 

“Is that not imposing?”

“Hardly,” Nico snorted, “The Graces go as big as humanly possible, like they can beat Jackson at his own game.”

Will felt his stomach flip with something that could have been anxiety at the thought of it. At the thought of what it meant that  _ Nico  _ invited  _ him  _ to a party.

“Alright,” he said, finally, “I guess I’ll see you there, then.”

Nico smiled, and Will thought that that was as good a reason as any to go. 

He called Kayla as soon as he got home. 

“You have to come to Jason Grace’s birthday party,” he said, words falling out of his mouth the second Kayla picked up the phone. 

“Whoa there,” she said, “What?”

Will grumbled, starting from the beginning. 

“Nico invited me to Jason’s party this weekend,” he said, “And I said yes?” 

“Holy shit,” she said, breaking down into laughter over the phone.

“Kayla,” he whined, “Kayla, please.”

“You’re a disaster,” she said, “I thought you hated him!”

“I- kind of? Maybe? It’s  _ complicated,”  _ he said, and she made a gentle noise. 

“It sounds to me like you want to get laid,” she said, and Will groaned, cheeks flushing hot and fierce. 

“I  _ don’t, _ ” he said, trying to sound firm, “I think he’s unpleasant, and even if I maybe once a little bit thought he was hot, I don’t want to kiss him. Or fuck him. Or  _ anything. _ ”

“Sure, sure,” she said, and he fought not to curse. She was doing this on purpose, he just knew it. 

“It’s not even gonna be a thing,” he said, “It’s literally just one party. Nothing’s gonna happen.”

He heard Kayla laugh, and rolled his eyes. 

Seriously. She was acting like this was going to be the start of his marriage. 

“If you say so, Will.”

✮✮✮

He knew that, objectively, whenever Thalia or Jason or Percy threw a party, Nico would be there. He knew that Nico would be there  _ tonight,  _ seeing as he was the one that fucking invited him. It would be stupid not to expect to see him.

But for some ridiculous reason, Will was still taken by surprise when he walked through the front door of the Grace’s house to see Nico leaning against the wall with a beer, talking quietly to his sister. 

He was stupidly attractive, and it drove Will insane. 

He didn’t know why the sight of him floored him, even if he was dressed up in a loose, see-through shirt, with his hair pinned back and what looked like make up dusted around his eyes. 

But here he was, and all at once, the foolishness of what he had done hit him. Here he was at a house party, just because Nico, a man he hardly liked, had mentioned it  _ once.  _

What the  _ fuck  _ was he doing?

_ He’s not your friend,  _ his brain supplied, unhelpfully, even as his eyes caught on his small smile to Hazel at his side. Because he was hot, incredibly so, but - 

They weren’t friends.

So Will spun on his heels and turned to the left, deciding firmly all at once that he was going to stay away from Nico. It was a big house. He would manage. 

A few sessions of studying where they weren’t constantly at each other’s throats didn’t make them friends. 

He knew enough people to coast from conversation to conversation, even when Kayla was, predictably, running late. Later than  _ normal,  _ even, but Will grabbed himself a drink from the Grace’s stupidly well stocked coolers - as if they really  _ were  _ trying to one up Percy - and did his best to not seem awkward. 

It didn’t take long at all for him to resort to ducking through the large halls and twisting wings of the house in search of some peace and quiet while he waited. Austin might be around somewhere, maybe _ ,  _ but God, he hoped that Kayla would turn up sooner rather than later. 

He stumbled over a figure sitting against the hallway wall. 

“Shit,” he muttered, and an apology was falling from his lips before he realised who it was he had almost kicked. 

“Hey,” Nico said, blinking up at Will. He swallowed, and nodded at him, unsure what on earth the social etiquette was for almost stumbling over a guy he had almost kind of been avoiding for the night. He only sort of knew him, but he had invited him, and yet he was trying to avoid him, and - 

“Do you wanna sit?” Nico said, again, cutting him out of his thoughts. Will blinked, but found, quite quickly, that he  _ did.  _

So avoiding Nico was going well. 

“Thanks,” he said, pressing his back to the wall and sliding down it gracelessly, feeling the soft fabric of his hoodie dragging along the wall paper. 

“Lost your friends?” Nico asked, and Will shrugged.

“Kayla is coming eventually, but you never know with her,” he said. “I wouldn’t- I wouldn’t ordinarily just be wandering around someone’s house on my own.”

“So you’re here with me?” he asked, and Will shrugged. 

“I wasn’t expecting to end up here, if I’m honest,” he started. 

“What, because I’m  _ insufferable? _ ”

“I was wrong,” Will said. He glanced up at Nico to see him looking back at him. Nico just blinked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’m sorry,” Will said, finally, turning to look him more fully in the eye, “I was being a complete dick when I said that.”

Nico’s mouth twitched up into a smile, just briefly. 

“Took you this long to notice?” he said. Will blinked, before realising that he was joking. 

“Yeah,” he said, laughing slightly. Nico looked away. 

“I guess I should apologise too,” he said, “You weren’t- you weren’t wrong, about any of the stuff you said. I’m sorry.”

“The things I said were pretty out of order though,” Will said, “I hardly even know you.” 

Nico shrugged. 

“It doesn’t change the fact I’ve been a jerk,” he said. Will could see him look down at the label of the bottle he had absentmindedly been peeling off with his thumb. It was chipping the nail polish on his fingers, and felt the loss, somehow. 

_ You aren’t friends, _ his brain reminded him, unhelpfully.

“Well,” he said, “Thanks.”

He faltered as the conversation ground to a halt, eyes falling back to the way Nico’s fingers shifted on the bottle in his grip, still scratching at the peeling label in front of him. The more he watched the more he caught his eyes straying, catching on the detailed embroidery of the sleeve cuffs.

“I like your shirt,” he said, instantly blushing a deep crimson red, because  _ what the fuck, Solace, that’s so gay -  _

“Hazel made me dress up,” he groaned, and Will laughed. “This is her shirt. She made me wear it because it  _ matched my eyes,  _ or whatever the fuck.”

Will laughed, feeling bubbly and bright and, blessedly, less stupidly drunk than he had been at Percy’s. 

It was surprisingly nice. 

He could see Nico smile where he sat next to him, a less guarded thing than he would usually give him. It made his heart flutter. 

And then Nico di Angelo was kissing him. 

Will gasped, startled as Nico pushed against him, surging up onto his knees to press a kiss to his lips. 

It was completely earth shattering in a way that Will couldn’t even comprehend, and as Nico started to move away he shot his hands up to curl tight in his hair, pulling him closer with a grip on the back of his head. 

It was shockingly unfair how good it felt to kiss Nico di Angelo. 

They were sat on the floor of a house, at the birthday of a man Will hadn’t even seen yet that night, and he was kissing a man he had, until recently, thought he completely hated. 

_ You’re not friends,  _ his brain repeated, again, and he shoved it down in favour of encouraging Nico to shift closer where he knelt at his side, feeling his cold hands at the underside of his jaw, and wanting them everywhere. 

“Hang on,” Nico said, gasping, pulling back. 

Will stopped, ready to let that be and go scream about it with anyone that’d listen, but Nico was grabbing his wrist and pulling him up to stand, unceremoniously dragging him down the hallway with a firm grip on his hand. 

He staggered after Nico, confused until he nudged open a door at their side and ducked in to look around it. Will stepped in, looking at an empty room with white furniture and a hell of a lot of plants, and a desk and a wardrobe - 

And a bed.

“It’s a guest room,” Nico said, quietly, gently tugging Will further through the door, but he didn’t shut it. “I usually stay in here when it’s too late to go home, so I’ve got -”

He stopped talking, and Will flushed. 

He didn’t usually do this, and he would never have thought that he would start with  _ Nico,  _ but at the same time - 

“I don’t want to be presumptuous,” Nico was saying, still not meeting his eyes, “But I thought if it was this or be tripped over by some drunk kid-”

“Kiss me,” Will said, shutting the door behind him with a click, and Nico looked up at him with a smile. 

He let Will turn him where he stood and kissed him, as requested, throwing his arms around his neck to pull him down to his level. Will stumbled, and didn’t mind, not in the slightest. 

Nico’s hands were on his shoulders, still somehow ridiculously cold, pushing his hoodie off, and Will gasped against his mouth, so on board, scrambling to pull his sleeves off and toss it somewhere out of sight. 

He wanted to unbutton Nico’s stupid shirt, and with a low jolt of heat he realised he  _ could. _

Will stumbled as they moved in sync towards the bed, still kissing Nico as he moved. He started to undo the buttons of Nico’s shirt, and Nico’s hands scrambled up to join him, until he was slipping it off and leaving himself in a tight, thin tank-top. 

Will was tripping over his feet even as Nico dropped onto the soft mattress, but didn’t care, not with the feeling of skin under his hands as he made the most impulsive decision of his college career.

He didn’t want to stop, though, and it didn’t seem like Nico did, either. 

Nico gasped against his mouth as he kissed him, harder, and he smiled. It was good to know he could make him gasp, like that, as infuriating as he was. He wanted to hear him make noises like that all the time, more even - 

Nico’s hands were gripping tight on his t-shirt, and Will felt him tug him closer. He made a low groaning noise, incredibly fucking on board with whatever the hell Nico wanted, turned on as all fuck - 

He shifted, dropping his head to press kisses against Nico’s jaw, his throat, his collarbone, let loose into the air with his shirt tossed absentmindedly onto the ground. His teeth drew lightly against his neck, sucking in a patch of skin to his mouth, teeth grazing over him -

“Wait,” Nico said, hands going to his chest, not to push him away, but to pause him. Will stopped, dragging himself back. His mouth and hands dropped where he had been leaving soft kisses onto Nico’s neck to look him in the eye. 

“Are you okay?” he asked, and Nico nodded. 

“I just,” he started, “Before-”

He cut himself off with a sigh, not meeting Will’s gaze. Will’s hand tightened absentmindedly where they rest on Nico’s hip, and he watched him bite his lip below him.

“We can stop, if you want,” Will said, but Nico shook his head. He opened and shut his mouth a few times, absently, before he finally spoke. 

And Will really wished he hadn’t.

“I need to know you aren’t doing this because I might give you money.”

It felt like someone had burst into the room to pour a bucket of ice water over him.

“Excuse me?”

“I’m not saying you  _ want  _ to, I just-”

“But you still had to ask,” Will said, suddenly reeling. 

“I didn’t know if you- or if-” Nico started.

“I have some self respect, actually,” he said, sputtering in disbelief. He could hear his voice rising with each word, even as he carried on, “I wouldn’t just fuck you  _ expecting  _ you to pay me.”

“I didn’t mean to imply I thought you were a sex worker-”

“No, you implied I’d just be using you for free sex and free shit, which is  _ infinitely  _ more insulting.” 

Nico’s cheeks flushed, but he didn’t say anything to that, and that was much, much worse. Will scoffed.

“Unbelievable,” Will said, gut curling in hot shame. He had been so  _ pleased,  _ so delighted, and so fucking turned on, but now he was reeling, shocked to his core. “I can’t believe I thought you would ever do anything but exactly this.” 

He pushed himself up from the bed, face heating with embarrassment, and eyes stinging. He could see the faintest mark of something that would bruise under Nico’s jaw, and he wanted to scream. 

But then Nico was standing too, pushing towards him.

“You hated me until now, and what, you’re all ready to jump me after one conversation?”

“ _ You  _ kissed  _ me _ !” Will yelled, spinning on his heel to look him in the eye. Nico didn’t falter, meeting the infuriated look he gave him with his very own fiery gaze. 

But he stayed silent, and Will rolled his eyes, turning to look away. He glanced around the room for his hoodie, trying to ignore the embarrassed heat on his face as he scrambled to grab it where it had been thrown on the ground. He tugged it on, wordless, not looking at Nico. 

Nico didn’t say anything as he left and the door slammed behind him, too loud. He paused outside it in the quiet corridor, where Nico had kissed him on the floor, closing his eyes while he tried to fucking breathe. 

“Shit,” he muttered, rubbing the heels of his palms against his eyes. 

This night fucking sucked. 

He pushed past countless laughing, shrieking figures, absolutely  _ hating  _ the embarrassed tears that threatened to break over his face. It wasn’t worth it,  _ Nico  _ wasn’t worth it -

But he was  _ mortified.  _ All at once he had gotten caught up in one guy that he thought was cute, that stuck on his mind, even when he had shown time and time again that he wasn’t ever going to change. He was a rich kid that did what he liked, and didn’t have any sense of how to be anything other than a huge pain in the ass.

He murmured an apology as he stumbled past someone, pushing down the stairs and out the front door with his eyes on the ground. He heard someone call his name and ignored it, not in the mood to socialise or do shots or be anywhere but curled up in his own bed. 

“Will!” a voice called, louder now. He stopped, turning on the front lawn to see Kayla running down the front steps after him. 

“Jesus,” she said when she saw him up close, “What happened?”

He groaned, letting her pull him into a tight hug as he dropped his face onto her shoulder and sniffled. It wasn’t worth  _ fucking  _ crying over this, but here he was.

“I kissed Nico di Angelo,” he said, finally, and appreciated that Kayla at least looked guilty when her first reaction was to gasp. 

“Shit,” she said, after a moment, “ _ Shit. _ ”

“He felt the need to check that I wasn’t expecting him to pay me,” he said, laughing through the messy sniffling tears, “Not even like he thought I was a prostitute. That’s respectable enough shit, but this was just- just him thinking I was gonna use him then leave.”

“Man, fuck him,” she said, and Will nodded, petulantly rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand. 

“Ugh,” he said, and Kayla nodded.

“Want to go back inside and get completely plastered? Or find a different hot guy who’ll blow you without being a dickhead about it? I heard Paolo’s back in town  _ and  _ recently single.” 

He laughed, but shook his head. Kayla just smiled, something small and vaguely pitying, before looping their arms and turning him resolutely away from the house. 

“Alright,” she said, “Let’s go get a pizza and annoy Austin.”

✮✮✮

By the end of the weekend, he was feeling significantly less sorry for himself, and owed it all to Kayla.  She had taken him home and curled up with him on his sofa well into the early morning, and he had been pulled out of his positively awful mood, slowly but surely. 

He still couldn’t focus by the time Monday rolled around, but he forced himself to try anyway. He knew he was glaring at his textbook more than he was  _ reading  _ it, but there was only so much he could do. 

It wasn’t for his presentation with Nico, the thought of which did nothing but fill him with dread. But even still, his heart wasn’t in it. 

“How’s your project going?” Austin asked, like he could read his mind. Will only groaned. 

“Awful,” he said, and Austin smiled, looking unsympathetic, which Will hardly appreciated. He dropped his face into his folded arms, groaning even louder, so  _ fucking  _ frustrated. 

“Nico di Angelo had to ask that I wasn’t trying to fuck him for money,” Will said, finally. 

When he looked up, Austin was staring back with his eyebrows raised. 

“Hot damn,” he said, and Will snorted. 

“Indeed.”

He’d been avoiding Nico, after the party, but that was hardly a surprise. It had been a disaster of a night, and the thought of seeing him again made his skin crawl. 

He could still think about what it had been like to kiss him, but each memory of the press of his lips was chased with hot, angry shame. 

“I’m gonna head,” he said, finally, when it finally became clear how futile of an attempt it was. Austin nodded, stretching his hands over his head with a yawn. 

“Good luck with your project,” he said, shooting him a knowing look. Will just huffed, not wanting to think about it.

He left the library in a daze, almost surprised to see the sun had set while he was pouring over a book and not taking any of it in. The seasons were changing, slowly but surely - but in the chilly night air, it was hard to remember that it would be summer, soon. 

It wasn’t far to go to get to his apartment, but he was  _ tired.  _ It was only Wednesday, and already it had been the week from hell. He was blessed to be off work until Friday, this week, but - 

Damn, he just wanted to put life on pause. 

He could feel a figure behind him and glanced up over his shoulder, catching the eyes of the young woman who had fallen into step behind him. He startled when he realised she had caught his eye, ducking his head back down to avoid feeling obligated to say something stupid like  _ hello.  _

But then all at once there were hands on his arm, tugging him around until he stumbled, unsteady. 

“Hey-”

“Give me your wallet,” she said, and then she was pressing forward until his back stumbled against the wall.

“Oh,” Will said, dumbly, realising, probably too slowly that he was being robbed.

She scoffed, pressing her forearm against his chest. Will floundered, not quite sure what to do in this kind of situation, considering he had never expected to  _ be  _ in this kind of situation. 

“Would you mind not robbing me?” he asked, and she rolled her eyes. “It’s just that I don’t have anything much on me, and-”

“Meg,” a voice said, cutting him off. The kid was looking up and away from Will, and he turned with her -

He didn’t know who he’d expected to see, but it wasn’t Nico di Angelo. 

“If I give you a hundred can you leave this one alone?” he said, hands stuffed into his jacket pockets. Will’s eyebrow twitched. 

“I don’t need you to save me,” he snapped, drawing both Nico and the girl’s attention to him. He could feel Nico staring at him, incredulous. 

“Feisty,” the kid muttered, and he rolled his eyes. 

“Do you want help, or not?” Nico said. 

“I don’t want to be  _ bought  _ by some rich brat,” he said,

“I’m loving this,” the girl said, stepping back a bit, but Will still felt crowded into the corner. “But I’ll take that hundred, and go, Nico.”

He rolled his eyes and nodded her over, and Will watched her go gladly, even as he stared after her with frustration biting at his heels. She ducked around the corner into a sprint before Will could say anything, and he rolled his eyes, moving to shove past Nico. 

“You’re welcome,” he muttered, and Will - 

He was  _ fucking  _ tired. 

In a second he was turning, shoving Nico back until his stupidly nice coat hit the brick wall behind him. He didn’t say anything, and that was almost more infuriating. 

“You know how insulting that is, right?” Will snapped. 

“She’s a kid,” Nico spit back, “What were you going to do? Fight her?”

“I would have dealt with it,” he said, “I would have  _ managed.” _

“You’re fucking infuriating-”

“ _ I’m  _ infuriating?” Will yelled, pushing forward to crowd Nico against the wall. 

Nico’s breath caught, and in a second Will was reminded just how close he had gotten to him. Like the universe wanted nothing more than to cause him pain, he realised with a start that there was still a faded hickey on Nico’s throat. 

_ From you,  _ his brain supplied. 

His traitorous brain flicked his eyes down to Nico’s mouth, remembering the night of Jason’s party, the feeling of Nico’s hands on his shoulders, the sounds that fell from his mouth when Will had kissed his neck. 

Will could see his jaw clench, and he pushed himself back and away. 

“Leave me the fuck alone, di Angelo,” he spit, walking faster than necessary to just  _ leave,  _ desperate to get space from him. Not caring whether or not he watched him go, so long as he didn’t follow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The drama! The tension! The intrigue!
> 
> I hope you enjoy, feel free as always to yell at me on tumblr @ americanbeautiies


	3. Living, falling in too deep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's wild how fast I got through this but I hope y'all enjoy! It was just short and fun and enjoyable and I really enjoyed getting to run with the prompt, so thank you to the anon on tumblr that requested it :)

Percy was having another party. 

Will  _ knew  _ he was having another party, and he knew that Nico would be there, like he always was. 

So he put his foot down. 

“The last two parties I went to were disasters. You can’t make me go,” he said, arms crossed stubbornly where he slouched against the cafe counter. 

Kayla frowned - but she didn’t push it. 

He wasn’t exactly surprised, then, when Austin and Kayla appeared at his door with what looked like an entire bar's worth of liquor, but he was not going to complain. 

There was music playing quietly from someone’s phone as Will lay on the floor of his apartment. Someone’s feet were tapping out the beat of the song against his arm, but he couldn’t for the life of him tell who.

“I almost got him shirtless, too,” he whined, staring blankly at the ceiling. Someone sighed.

“I forgot how loose-lipped you are when you drink,” Austin said. Will shrugged, as best as he could lying on his back.

“I still think Will should go date Paolo,” Kayla said, and Will felt himself giggle. 

“He is hot,” he said, turning to look at her where she sat curled on the ground across from him. She just nodded, watching him with a fond smile on her face. 

“Will? Attracted to someone who doesn’t drive him up the wall? I’d pay to see it,” Austin said. Will frowned - 

But he wasn’t wrong.

It had been too long of knowing him, that Will could hardly remember what had first made his skin prickle every time he saw Nico di Angelo. Somewhere along the way, without his realising, it had been replaced with frustration, more than any actual dislike. 

Maybe it was when he kissed him hard and made it clear just how much Will was missing out on. 

He groaned, frustrated with his own inability to convey the exact details of just how annoyed he was that Nico was an asshole, but an asshole that could kiss really damn well. 

“Boys suck,” he said. 

He really was losing his goddamn mind.

✮✮✮

He went back to ignoring Nico at every possible turn. 

He would glance at him once in class and look away, see him in the library and turn around, avoid parties and duck into the store room whenever he had come to work, until he was a problem for someone else. 

And he had seemed pretty confident with his methods - 

But he failed to account for the fact Nico was stubborn.

“We have to finish this project,” Nico said, stepping too close to before Will could leave the lecture hall, and trapping him by his seat. 

He stayed silent, not sure what else there was to say. Nico was right, but he didn’t have to be happy about it.

But Nico was a certain brand of stubborn, and he crossed his arms, waiting for Will to say anything. He sighed, realising with dread that Nico wouldn’t let him leave the room until he gave him a response.

And he  _ was  _ right, as annoying as that was to admit. 

“I have time today,” he said, finally, “and not much else this week. Do you wanna just do it now?”

He could see Nico’s discomfort as plain as day on his face, but he nodded, slowly.

“The library?” he asked, and Will shrugged. 

“Whatever.”

It was a painfully quiet walk there, and he could tell that Nico was uncomfortable. 

_ Serves him right,  _ Will grumbled to himself, and that helped, at least a bit.

They could hardly sit in a silent study area while working on a project together, and that meant they had to step through the small space dedicated to students keen to work together. But they didn’t talk as they went to find a seat, even with students around them chattering quietly. 

It was fucking awkward. 

But at the same time, it took hardly any time at all for them to fall into a rhythm. Before he knew it, through the discomfort and tension taut between them, Will managed to fall into that sharp focus again, like nothing was different. Like it had been exactly how they had been before the incident at Jason’s house. 

It was like he blinked and realised that they had passed two hours focusing and working, rather than fighting, until, looking down at the work before them, Will realised they were done.

“I think it’s ready,” Will said, knowing he sounded surprised. He tapped through the presentation slides on the screen between them, before looking up at Nico. 

“I’d hope so,” he said, “We have to present it in less than a week.”

Will smiled, and felt his heart thud in his chest when Nico looked up, and smiled back. It was nowhere near as unguarded as it had once been, between them, but - 

It was something. 

“So we’ll call it there?” Will said.

“Yeah,” he said, pushing himself back and stretching. Will could see the bottom of his shirt ride up awkwardly where he had pulled back from the table, and looked away, pushing himself to stand too fast, too awkward.

The air was cool when they stepped out into the evening, almost darkness falling around them. Will stretched his arms high above him, now that he could breathe air that wasn’t stale and dusty and crowded. 

“Which way are you going?” Nico asked, and Will nodded to the right.

“In the middle of town,” he said, and Nico nodded. 

“I live the other way,” he said, and Will paused, waiting for him to say something. Wanting him to say  _ anything.  _

“Cool,” he said, when Nico said nothing. He had let himself hope, just a tiny amount, and his stomach dropped when he got nothing in return. 

He smiled, forcing himself to concede a small peace offering, as he turned to leave. He could let the discomfort in his chest sit. 

It was going to take time to get over it, but, he figured, he might just be able to look at Nico as a friend one day. 

“I’ll see you-”

“Will,” Nico said, words bursting out before he could leave, and Will stopped, turning to face him where they stood on the quiet pavement in front of the library. 

He raised an eyebrow at him, but Nico said nothing. 

“You good?” he asked, when he stayed silent. Nico glanced away, before turning back to look at him in the eye with an intensity that surprised him. 

“I’m sorry,” he said. 

Will blinked, eyebrows raising without him even thinking about it. It was so obviously clear that shock had played over his face from the disgruntled look Nico gave him in response. 

“What?” he asked. Nico sighed, but didn’t look away, even though Will could see discomfort warring on his face. 

“I’m sorry,” he said, “About Jason’s. And about the other day, with Meg. I’m not good at- at this kind of thing,” he said. 

“What, talking to people without insulting them?”

He had mostly been joking, too uncomfortable to do much else. But to his shock, Nico nodded. 

“Yeah,” he said, “Did you not fucking notice? I don’t talk to people because people have never wanted to talk to  _ me. _ ”

Will was quiet, and Nico continued, like dams had broken, now. 

“It’s not even about who my dad is,” he said, “I’m just- I’m always the creepy goth kid in the corner. Why talk to me when you could hit up any of the other rich kids, or any other kid period, that are actually nice to be around?” 

“So at the party,” Will said, starting to piece each little bit together, thinking back to the way Nico had kissed him, stopped him with hands on his chest, watched him leave without much of any explanation - 

“I couldn’t imagine why you’d actually want to kiss me,” he said, laughing dryly. “But it was still really shitty of me. I am sorry about it. And I’m sorry for what happened with Meg, and the money. I know she’s just a kid on hard times, and- I was just trying to help. I’m sorry.”

“That’s-” Will started, never having heard Nico say so much in one go before. He swallowed, nodding, as the words turned over in his brain. Repeating the apologies, that Nico had given him freely. 

“Thanks,” he said, finally. They both fell quiet, before Nico cleared his throat. 

“I know I’m too direct, sometimes,” he said, “And I know I come across like I don’t give a shit, but I do. A lot.”

Will nodded. 

“You get that you were an ass, right? For a good long while?” Will said, but he smiled as he did, just a touch, and Nico laughed. 

“I know,” he said, “And I’m trying to get better at that.”

“Okay, Nico,” he said, “I’ll see you in class, yeah?”

He watched Nico smile, and nod. He could hear the voice in his head rolling their eyes at him, calling him  _ whipped,  _ calling him stupid. And there was no way he  _ could  _ leap straight into something after all the shit that had happened in the past weeks. 

But it was something, right?

Nico had apologised. 

✮✮✮

“Any questions?” Will said, glancing out over the hall of students, final slide of their presentation shining overhead. They were met with stilted applause, but that meant that they didn’t have to keep talking, and that was good. 

“Alright, we’ll finish the rest of the presentations next class,” their lecturer said, as the bell above them went off, speaking up over the cacophony of rustling bags and gentle chatter. “Thanks for those of you that gave yours today -”

Will tuned her out as he went to shut off the slides, mind reeling with adrenaline and anxiety and the fact that for all the bullshit he had put up with to do this one fucking presentation - 

It was done. 

“I have to run,” their lecturer said, bringing him back to attention, as the room emptied rapidly. He was hyper aware of Nico’s presence at his side, but didn’t look at him. “But that was really well done. Glad you both sorted it out.”

Will smiled, nodding at her as she turned to duck out of the room. The final stragglers emptied out of the lecture hall, and all at once, he was alone with Nico again. 

He could feel eyes on him, sharp and heavy, feeling it even stronger in the empty hall. 

He looked up to see Nico watching him. He had grabbed their bags, and held Will’s out to him. Like a peace offering. 

“That’s that, I guess,” he said, and Nico nodded. 

He watched Nico open and shut his mouth a few times, and felt his hand absently fiddle with the ring on his finger. 

“Listen,” Nico said, finally, still stubbornly refusing to look at Will, “I get if- I get if you don’t want anything to do with me now that this is over. But- I do- I-”

He cut himself off, sighing heavily. Will just blinked, but then he was looking up with fierce eyes that took him by surprise. 

“Do you want to go on a date?” he said, sudden and all at once, throwing Will off balance in a second.

“Oh,” Will said, suddenly baffled. He could see Nico’s jaw clench, while he waited for a response.

He could just leave. He  _ should  _ just leave, put this all behind him and deal with fighting fires that came up for the rest of the term. Was it really worth it, after all the shit he had dealt with?

He felt his stomach flip, and knew that it just might be. 

Nico hadn’t said anything more, and Will didn’t know what to say, but he  _ wanted  _ to. Some stubborn part of him looked at Nico and saw someone worth keeping around, as infuriating as he had been so far, even if he had no idea why. 

He hadn’t considered the possibility of ever dating Nico di Angelo, but at the same time - 

He really fucking did want to, didn’t he?

“That sounds nice,” Will said, finally, and Nico’s mouth twitched in something that was almost, possibly, maybe a smile. 

✮✮✮

He went to work and immediately screamed at Kayla. 

“You are  _ wild, _ ” she said, and he groaned, “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“No,” he said, looking up at her with a pitiful look in his eyes, “I’m really not.”

She didn’t say anything, and that was when he knew that maybe it  _ was  _ a stupid idea. If even Kayla couldn’t find a way to mock him for it, he might just be making the worst decision of his adult life.

“I might call you and make you come bail me out,” he said, trying for light hearted, and feeling just the slightest bit more comfortable when Kayla laughed. 

“Be careful, okay?” she said, and he nodded. 

It might be great, better than he could have possibly imagined. Or it could be another disastrous night.

But either way, he was doing it.

Nico had told him that he was going to pick him up at home, firmly putting his foot down about picking Will up from work. 

“You need to take more time off,” he said, point blank to Will’s face, and he still wasn’t quite used to the deadpan way he said things, sometimes. 

But he had obliged, and waited on the steps to his apartment block for Nico to get him just before 8pm.  He was prompt as ever, not trying to touch Will as he nodded the direction they’d be going in. 

Will followed him into a cozy looking shopfront, blinking in the dark decor. It was suave, without being too ridiculous. 

It was a bar. 

“Would you be offended if I tried to pay?” Nico asked, and Will looked at him, a soft look on his face, even as Nico continued, “Not to be patronising, or weird, just because - well, it’s not actually my money, so I don’t-”

“I don’t mind you paying, Nico,” he said, and Nico shut his mouth, cutting himself off from a ramble. 

And it was - 

Really fucking good. 

Will was surprised at how much fun he had just talking to Nico, asking him about anything and everything, sharing his own ridiculous stories of the past few years of being a student. 

He didn’t even feel the need to cut and run early. By the time Will stepped out into the brisk night air, Nico was falling in step next to him.

“I’ll walk you home,” Nico said, and Will smiled, happy with the thought of it.

“Sounds good,” he said. 

It was quiet, in a peaceful way, in the way that summer evenings often were, and the conversation passed between them with surprising ease. Like it usually did when he was with friends, with just the right amount of liquor sitting in his stomach. Not enough to push him to do something stupid - 

But enough to feel  _ nice.  _

They stopped outside his apartment building far too quickly, for his taste. He was getting used to what it was actually like to be with Nico di Angelo, and enjoy it, and it felt like a shame to say goodbye. 

“This is me,” he said, dumbly, nodding at his door and feeling so stupidly ridiculous for it. Nico had picked him up in the exact same place only a few hours prior.

“Cool,” Nico said. He opened his mouth, and closed it again, and Will watched, heart thudding in his chest like some stupid teenager with a crush. It was ridiculous, really.

“Nico,” he started - 

“Can I kiss you?” Nico blurted, and Will blinked, startled. 

“Not for money?” Will said, and Nico rolled his eyes. 

“No,” he said, a teasing note in his voice. Months ago, Will wouldn’t have noticed it, but it felt clear as day, now. “Because I’d like to kiss you, if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind,” he said, and then Nico was stretching up to kiss Will, slow and soft and perfect. 

Will’s hands came up involuntarily to clutch at his hips, gently, just like they had all those weeks ago curled on a bed in Jason’s home - 

But somehow much, much nicer. 

He gasped as Nico pressed closer to him, kissing him harder, and then he was pulling back and feeling heat flare in his stomach as Nico’s eyes fluttered open. 

“Do you wanna come upstairs?” he said, breathless, and Nico blinked, cheeks starting to flush. But he nodded, and Will grinned, scrambling for his keys. 

“I know it’s not much _ , _ ” he said when he pushed the door open to his apartment. He glanced around the entryway of an apartment that felt, suddenly, far too small. 

He felt something settle over him, like the walk up all those stairs had cleared his head. And yet, underneath it all, there was unmistakable fire, that made him want nothing more than to jump Nico where he stood by his coat rack. 

“It’s nice,” Nico said, eyes tracing around it, falling quiet straight after. Will turned to watch him toe his shoes off, weirdly touched by how polite that was as a thing to do.

When Nico looked up and caught his eye, Will felt the breath punch out of his chest. 

And it felt like something snapped. 

“Can I kiss you again?” he managed, and Nico nodded, suddenly seeming just as desperate as Will felt himself, and they were moving towards each other, lips and teeth and hands and -

“Fuck,” Will whispered, against Nico’s mouth, and he laughed. 

“Yeah,” he said, and Will felt a smile cross over his own lips, too. It was so good, so stupidly, ridiculously good, better than he had thought. Even better than the first night he had kissed him- 

But at the same time.

Will pulled back. 

His stomach flipped at the sight of Nico chasing him with his lips before fluttering his eyes open again to look at him. And as much as that made him want to just ignore it and kiss him again, he had to get something off his chest, first.

“Are you okay?” Nico said, sounding completely out of breath. Will nodded, fingers tapping absently against Nico’s waist. He hadn’t even realised he had grabbed him, but here they were. 

“Listen, I don’t- I don’t know what you want, with this. With me,” he said. Nico just looked at him, still breathing heavily, even as he continued, “But we need- we need to sort out some ground rules.”

He could see Nico swallow, but he nodded. Will had the distinct impression that Nico had not been expecting this to be where Will was going when he pulled away from kissing him. 

“Yeah,” Nico said, “That’s- probably a good idea.”

Will nodded, suddenly regretting his own choices, when he could be kissing Nico, now. 

But he had done that once before, and it hadn’t ended too well.

“I don’t want you thinking I’m some charity case that needs money, or- or gifts,” he said, “I don’t mind you buying drinks if we go out, or whatevr, but like- I’m not expecting you to start paying my rent. That’s not what I want.”

Nico smiled, and nodded. 

“I’m okay with that,” he said, “I think I’m a bit too young to be a sugar daddy, anyway.”

Will laughed, head tipping forward a bit as a blush rose high on his cheeks. 

“I really killed the mood, didn’t I?” he said, and Nico laughed. But he just leaned forward, and gentle fingertips on his chin tipped his head back up to look him in the eye. Will felt heat curl in his stomach at the feeling of it, floored by how small of a movement it was but how much he wanted it to continue, as every other thought flew out of his head. 

Nico really was fucking hot. 

And then he was leaning up and kissing Will, slow, at first, but with an increasing desperation and heat as he pressed closer to him. Will groaned, a wholly embarrassing noise, but his hands flew up to Nico’s hips anyway, thumbs ducking under his shirt and tracing gently over his skin.

Nico pulled back with a gasp, and Will felt that, too - 

“Listen, I don’t,” Nico started, cheating rising heavily, “If it’s too fast, or you don’t want to- but-”

“Bedroom?” Will asked, just as breathless, and Nico laughed, nodding. 

“Yeah,” he said, letting Will pull him forward with a grip on his wrist, into the dark unknown of the night. 

✮✮✮

“I feel really shitty kicking you out,” Will said, but Nico just shrugged. 

It was the morning, and he sat tucked up in one of Will’s hoodies and his own boxers and not much else, drinking down coffee Will had offered as a peace treaty for telling him that actually, he had to leave, soon, even though it was only 7 am. He had work, and as nice as the night had been, he didn’t exactly want to leave Nico unsupervised in his apartment. 

Because he had spent the night, and that was a weird thought. 

“I still think you should take more time off,” he said, “But I respect your choices.”

Will smiled, heart fluttering at the sentiment. It was such a small thing, but it felt so at odds with who he had thought Nico was as a person, months ago. And it was much nicer to know the real Nico, now.

“You can swing by whenever you want,” he teased, “Eventually you might get free coffee out of it.”

“I think I can cover the cost of a black coffee.”

“Maybe I’ll get you to admit that it’s actually gross, and you can do better.”

“I don’t appreciate you already trying to change who I am as a person,” he said, and Will laughed, feeling so  _ warm _ . 

It was shockingly nice to banter with him, sitting, sleep rumpled as early as it was, in borrowed clothes that nearly drowned him. 

But soon enough he was dressed in his own clothes, with Will in the comfortable t-shirt and jeans he could wear to work, and they were walking down the stairs of his apartment side by side. And Will felt  _ good.  _

“I’ll see you soon,” Nico said in the fresh morning air, and that sounded like a promise that Will would hold him to. 

“See you,” he said, rushing to work with a spring in his step. 

The morning was slow, only him and Kayla behind the counter, although he could see Chiron working through paperwork in the back corner, wheelchair tucked under one of the tables. 

Kayla had given him a knowing look when he had made his way in, and he had ignored her, determined to  _ not  _ spill all of the tea less than an hour after he had left Nico’s presence. He wasn’t even keen to say he had only just said goodbye to him, after he had stayed the night.

Austin’s appearance was unexpected but not unwelcome, especially in the stale air of the cafe, on a quiet day filled with nothing more than slow jazz over the radio. 

“How d’you think your presentation went?” Austin asked, leaning against the pick-up counter while Will made him a drink.

Will shrugged. He had put it out of his mind pretty fucking fast, caught up in the storm of  _ Nico  _ and  _ a date  _ to pay it much mind. It felt like it had been eons since he had given it, when it had only been a few days. 

“It’s done,” he said, “Thank fuck.” 

“You’re free, now,” Austin replied, “You can finally tell di Angelo to fuck off.”

Kayla’s head whipped up from the side. 

“Did he not tell you the dumb fucking thing he did?” she said. Will groaned, as she darted over to interrupt their conversation. 

“Will. Tell me you didn’t,” Austin said, deadpan. Will dropped his face into his hands, already hating the direction they were going in.

“We went on a date,” he said, flushing, “Last night. And it- I had fun. It was good. We-”

“I can’t believe you,” Austin said, and Will whined. 

“It- we- it’s not-”

Kayla gasped.

“Oh my god,” she said, “They totally fucked.” 

She said it like she had been meaning to whisper, but it was practically a yell. Will spluttered, face flying up with his cheeks heating up something fierce. Austin just snorted. 

“You’re so right, they  _ did-” _

“That is  _ not  _ what I was going to say!”

“But did you?” Kayla asked. Will blinked, mouth opening and shut, unsure how to say they  _ had,  _ technically, but that wasn’t what he had meant-

“You guys fucking suck,” he muttered, and they both broke down into bright, giggling laughter.

The bell above the door jingled even as Kayla and Austin doubled over, still finding it far too funny. Will rolled his eyes, turning to the front of the cafe - 

Nico raised an eyebrow at the two of them, and it only set them off further. 

“Hey,” Will said, smiling at the man across the counter, firmly ignoring his friends. 

“I’m not stalking you,” Nico said, and Will grinned, “I just need coffee. Like, really badly.”

“Didn’t sleep well?” Austin said, and Will groaned, even as Austin and Kayla laughed again, sharp and loud. 

“Yeah, I actually spent all night bitching with this hot guy about his nosy friends,” he said, and Will snorted. He could see a pink flush rising on Nico’s cheeks, that Will was stupidly, annoyingly charmed by. 

“He’s  _ mean, _ ” Austin said to Will, and he rolled his eyes. 

“We’ve been over this-”

“Did you at least make it worth it?” Kayla asked, and Will turned to look at her at the same time as Nico did. She grinned as their eyes fell on her, and Will had just a second of warning to know he was going to hate whatever came out of her mouth. 

“What?” Nico asked, before Will could warn him - 

“All that  _ bitching  _ that kept you and Will up,” she said, and Will groaned. 

He was going to fucking  _ die.  _

“Kayla,” he groaned, but she waved him off.

“We have to vet our best friend’s boyfriends,” she said.

“We aren’t-” Will said, darting to look at Nico - 

But he just smiled, at him, disarming Will with only a glance. 

“We aren’t,” he agreed, “But you never know.”

Will’s heart thumped in his chest, and he smiled back. 

That sounded like it had promise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's going to be another chapter/follow on story! It will be an NSFW extrapolation of Date Night TM, but I didn't want people to feel like they had to read any 18+ content if they didn't want, so it wasn't included in the actual fic. 
> 
> Feel free to yell at me in the comments or on tumblr @ americanbeautiies (or send over a request!)

**Author's Note:**

> Yell at me on tumblr @ americanbeautiies 
> 
> I also always am happy to take prompts/requests on tumblr or from comments, so please do share if you have anything you want to see written!


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